Rust
by Iaragon
Summary: Sequel to Red. All power fades with time.
1. Prologue

I: Hello and welcome readers to the sequel of 'Red'! I hope you like it. I'm going to try and _not _be hasty with this one, as it actually checking for (gasp) grammar and spelling every once in a while. But! I _am _very excited about this. I'm not sure how fast updates will come, depending on my projects for my school's Creative Writing club, my book, and the amount of time I have on my hands (not to mention inspiration). But I'm ready if you are!

Disclaimer: I don't own Yu Yu Hakusho.

INFO: Two years have passed since the end of the first story. Yusuke and Keiko are engaged. Genkai died last year, leaving her temple to Yukina as a home for the koorime. As such, Hiei spends most of his time there. Kurama is now attending Tokyo U for a major in English.

Now let's get going.

* * *

_Prologue_

North Makai was silent tonight.

It almost seemed as though the dark forests had been petrified. Not the slightest breeze sifted the branches; not a single leaf drifted from the trees. No life wandered through the foliage under the nearly nonexistant moonlight, not even the nocturnal predators usually devouring their prey.

A man stood in the midst of the forest, and drank in the unnatural silence.

He was tall. His slim body was wrapped in a simple black yukata that blended perfectly with the darkness of his surroundings. Long, thick silver hair ran down his back freely, his pale, unmoving face set with two navy blue eyes. Silver ears sat perfectly still on his head.

In a matter of seconds, he began moving. No trace of his presence was left in his wake; no sound of his feet on the soft forest floor. He walked like a ghost, yet his demeanor of nonchalance did not change.

Soon enough, the forest gave way to a wide clearing. Sitting amidst the lush grass was a large mansion. Its windows glowed warmly against the oppressing darkness, a tempting invitation to those of the outside world.

The youkai opened the front door without hesitation. Immediately, a young boy dressed in fine robes appeared infront of him, bowing.

"Kakei-sama," he greeted softly. "Kaa-san said you would be coming."

"Hn." Kakei walked past him, briefly setting a hand on the boy's brown hair in the process. The boy turned as he shut the door, observing the tall demon as he walked gracefully up the stairs.

"Kakei-sama, kaa-san has already gone to bed."

Kakei paused on the stairs. The boy pulled a small velvet pouch from his obi as he moved to the base of the staircase. Even though the older man was not turned in his direction, he held it out and waited obediently.

"She wished for me to give you this…"

Kakei turned his head and stared at the pouch in the boy's hand. Finally, he travelled down and received the child's offering. The boy waited patiently, staring up at him without err. Many of the children did this. They were attracted to his eyes; so much like hers.

Kakei carefully undid the strap of the small pouch, turned it upside down, and very gently tipped the contents into his open palm. A delicate necklace sat there; a simple black cord with three small, brass rectangles hanging lengthwise from it. The middle one was longer than those on either side of it and was painted a deep crimson. The pendants were obviously aged; worn at the corners, slighty dulled.

The silver haired youko stared at it for a long moment. Slowly, his ears folded flat against his head. He turned and headed back up the stairs. The boy looked after him anxiously. "Kakei-sama? Kaa-san-,"

But Kakei was already gone. He disappeared down the hall and unceremoniously opened the only door, his eyes narrowed. The huge room was dark. Kakei closed the door in disregard, his animalistic eyes already trained on one point in the room.

"Mother."

* * *

tbc. 


	2. The Murder

**Hullo, **sorry for the delay. I'm a procrastinator and I can accept that.

Keiko is NOT dead in this story. That was one of the fics I took off. She's quite alive and well in Iaragon-Land these days.

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho. and I did not invent doughnuts, either.

**

* * *

**

To Ascend

**by Iaragon

* * *

**

"_We live by admiration, hope, and love; and even as these are well and wisely fixed, in dignity of being we ascend." – _William Woodsworth

* * *

**The Murder**

"Thank you, Kurama," Koenma nodded his gratitude as a redheaded man, standing in front of his desk, handed him a detailed report. Earlier that week the young ruler had requested an overview concerning any threats at large within the West borders of Makai.

It was not a challenging task, to say the least. The male watched with patient, almond-shaped eyes as Koenma flipped through the pages of his document whilst scanning carefully the typed, neatly organized information its pages contained. He squinted critically at the size twelve font before leaning back, satisfied. "Good. Excellent. I've been wanting a report on this for some time now, but Kami forbid the ogres listen to what _I _have to say."

Kurama paid little mind to the toddler's complaints, arms set across his chest as he waited without concern for dismissal. Having just come from his classes, he was still wearing his more professional clothing – a buttoned white shirt and black pants, his hair tied loosely at the nape of his neck. As he let his senses expand around the room, Kurama noticed something amiss.

"It's warmer than usual," he commented idly.

Koenma was quite anal about the temperature of the palace. The air conditioning was always on and no one was allowed to change it, not even their favourite blue-haired ferry girl. The mention of the change in climate made Koenma's eyebrow tick, but he kept his gaze fixed on the report almost stubbornly. "Dai's sleeping down the hall. If I kept it cool in here, she'd never wake up." He sighed shortly and flipped a page with a bit more force than needed. Kurama watched patiently as the thin paper ripped. "She's doing that more and more often lately." Koenma scowled at the page and set the report down with a slam.

"Anyways, thank you again for the report. Dismissed."

The redhead nodded wordlessly and turned for the door. Outside was the usual chaotic mass of ogres running left and right in a blind panic, papers flying everywhere. All the ruckus bled into loud, buzzing white noise as Kurama passed through, easily evading a projectile typewriter and continuing down the long expanse of an office before the room narrowed into a much quieter hallway. Doorways littered the wall on either side of him, all of them closed. Only the farthest door on the left side was slightly ajar.

Inside, light filtered into the room from an open window. It pooled across the small, white futon sitting on the floor and illuminated the black hair spilled across it like ink. A feminine body lay with her back to the door, form covered with an old blue blanket. Her free shoulder rose slowly up, down, up, and down with every breath.

Kurama pulled the door shut, his hand lingering perhaps a second longer than needed before he let it slide to his side and turned back down the way he had come.

* * *

"Aah," Yusuke stretched his arms high above his head as he yawned. "Man, this is nice. When was the last time we got to relax?"

"Meh, two months ago?" Kuwabara rubbed his chin in thought as he kicked back in their booth seat. "Right before that whole rock demon fiasco-,"

Yusuke groaned. "That was _terrible,_" he said tiredly. Keiko giggled next to him.

"Well, you're home now, right?" she looked across the table. "Oh, Kurama, can't you take a break from that?"

Kurama sat near the end of the booth with a laptop sitting on the table in front of him, typing at an almost inhuman pace. "I'll be finished soon," he said simply. "Your coffee's getting cold, Hiei."

A slightly disgusted growl came from the opposite end of the booth, where a black haired, red-eyed man sat with his arms stubbornly folded and his eyes shut. Obviously he was not willing to drink what sat on the table in front of him.

Yusuke snorted. "Kurama's too _into _his work. He's a university boy now."

Kuwabara grinned. "Not to mention he single-handedly doubled the female population of Tokyo U."

"All with just a glance of his _beautiful eyes_-," the Spirit Detective batted his own lashes.

Someone snorted softly as they reached the table. "I did not go just for _him_," scoffed a feminine voice. A young woman with soft brown hair and blue eyes sat down next to Kurama, sipping her coffee. "I actually want a good education."

"That's what they all say, to cover up their desperate adoration," Yusuke grinned at her.

"Not everyone is infatuated with me, Yusuke." Kurama said calmly.

"Well." The girl tipped her head slightly and smiled at him. "I don't see why they wouldn't be."

Kurama paused, turned his head slightly, and let the corners of his mouth twitch upwards for a moment before he returned to his work. Keiko caught the girl's gaze and winked.

"So Yuki," Keiko began. "It's Mother's Day on Sunday. Are you doing anything special?"

Yuki nodded happily. "I bought her a nice new radio; she loves to listen to music while she's working out. What about you?"

"I got my mom a certificate for the spa," Keiko said confidently.

"I got chocolate," Kuwabara declared proudly.

"My God, that's so original Kuwabara, how _do _you do it?"

"Shut up Urameshi!"

Keiko rolled her eyes. "Suuichi?"

"A new pair of earrings," Kurama answered. "And dinner."

Yuki smiled cheerfully and looked across the table. "What about you, Hiei-san? Are you doing anything special with your mother?"

Red eyes opened to regard the girl with a cold, withering glare.

"I would never waste my time on something so naïve."

Silence followed.

Kuwabara laughed loudly. "Ah, ignore him! He's just cranky because he's short."

"In case you didn't know, you oaf, the taller you are the shorter your lifespan."

"Yeah well – what?" Kuwabara stared at him, incredulous. "You're – you're joking!"

Hiei smirked. "I hope you've written your will. Not that you possess anything of value."

"Hey – he's lying! Kur-Suiichi!"

Before Kurama could respond, the door opened and a blue-haired girl bounced in happily, stopping at their table. "Good morning boys! Koenma-sama was – oh!"

Botan smiled widely at Yuki. "Hi there! You must be Yuki! I've heard so much about you – I'm Botan!"

Yuki smiled back. "Nice to meet you."

"What's this about Koenma?" Yusuke asked, stifling another yawn.

Yuki's head tilted curiously. "Who's Koenma?"

"Our employer," Kurama shut his laptop with a soft click. Botan smiled softly.

"He wants to see you guys. Important business."

"Jesus, no peace around here," Yusuke groused as he stood up. "See you, Keiko."

"Come home soon," Keiko told them. Kurama handed Yuki his laptop with a brief smile.

"Please hold onto this for me."

"Of course," Yuki nodded lightly as she stood up to allow him to pass.

The four walked out of the shop with Botan in the lead. She walked into the alley next to the store and whipped around, bouncing on the balls of her feet. "I like her, Kurama. She's a cutie! It's about time you got yourself a girl."

"It's not as you're assuming."

Hiei growled impatiently. "I did not come here to chit chat about some ningen."

Botan put her hands up with a sigh. "Alright, alright. Let's go!"

She opened a portal. Yusuke grinned and hopped through first, quickly followed by the others of the Tantei.

* * *

Koenma was waiting silently. He didn't say a word as they walked in. His eyes darted restlessly around the room as though he wanted very much to be somewhere else. The toddler chewed furiously on his soother, hands placed flat on the desk.

Kurama knew something was wrong the moment he walked in, when Koenma's eyes dashed as far away from him as possible.

"So what's up, toddler?" Yusuke asked, stretching lazily.

Koenma pulled a remote from the heap of papers on his desk and nodded to the plasma screen attached to the ceiling. "Turn around, and watch. This footage was taken by an agent yesterday night."

The screen flickered on. It was black for a moment, before a slightly distorted shot of the forest floor came on screen.

"_South Makai, 1:08 AM." _A gravelly voice came on the line. _"We reached the scene approximately thirty two minutes after death of victim._"

The camera rose from the floor. Trees around the area were charred and smoldering. A few patches of grass on the floor were still burning. The camera rounded slowly across the area to rest on one tree.

Hanging from it was a girl.

Her body swayed gently. A long, thorned vine was tied around her neck like a noose. From her dead limbs dripped blood, so stark in colour it made the rest of the world seem dramatically lackluster. They fell in a slow, devastating pace…running down her pale white arms, curving along the hollow of her wrist, leaving a trail of residue in its wake as the blood slid down the girl's lifeless fingers to join the large red puddle below.

_"Victim's age is estimated between fifty and one hundred years. Female. Fox demon, rare breed. It appears the victim suffered drastic amounts of beating prior to death. Fractures on the arms, head and legs suggest a struggle. All fingers are broken. Wrists, arms, ankles, and legs are broken. Cause of death: hanging. The material used is a rare species of vine native only to the far south. After the victim was dead, it appears the perpetrators further abused and warped the body."_

"This is disgusting." Yusuke ran a hand through his hair and glared at Koenma. The toddler was unforgiving.

"Get over it and watch. You have no idea what this means."

The voice came on again. _"The area has been burned. We have reason to believe at least five people were involved in the murder. We count this as the third hanging in five days. Further investigation pending._"

The camera went black. Koenma put down his remote. His voice was cold. "I want you to find whoever's doing this, and kill them. I want them all gone. That's it, that's all. You saw the tape. Someone out there is _killing little girls _and so _help _me if I have to receive another recording like this again you four will be the ones who pay. Start in South Makai. We need these people gone. Now get out."

It was the shortest briefing they had ever gotten. Obviously, Koenma was ticked off. With a small sigh, Kurama was the first to turn and walk towards the door.

"Sick," Kuwabara shook his head slightly as he followed Kurama. "Really sick."

Yusuke sighed shortly. Pinching the bridge of his nose, he walked out as well.

Hiei remained, arms folded, leaning against the window. Koenma peered at him through beady eyes. "I suppose you read my mind, did you?"

"You were broadcasting," the demon replied flatly. "Tell me where she is."

* * *

Yusuke frowned, staring at the man walking ahead of him. Bold crimson hair shifted gently between shoulder blades, hidden beneath the soft cotton of Kurama's blouse. Yusuke knew the entire mission was a bad one, but the redhead was not one to be outwardly affected by these types of things.

Yet he was being so…_quiet. _

"Something's up with Kurama," Yusuke whispered to Kuwabara. Glancing up from his thoughts, the other frowned.

"What?"

"He's acting funny. Don't you think?"

Kuwabara narrowed his eyes thoughtfully at Kurama's back. "You mean…more like Hiei?"

"Yeah!"

The orange-top snorted. "You're a bit slow, aren't you? He's been like that for a while now. About time you caught on."

The brown haired Spirit Detective stared at him incredulously. "How could _you _possibly notice something before I do?"

"You're not as smart as you think you are, Urameshi!"

"Oi, Kurama!" Yusuke yelled, pointedly ignoring Kuwabara whilst a vein throbbed from his forehead. "Where are we heading?"

"Scene of the murder."

"Scene of the - but _why? _We already saw that dumb place on the-,"

"Any details could have been missed," Kurama interrupted calmly. "We don't have enough information at this time to pursue any possible suspects."

Grudgingly, Yusuke agreed and let Kurama lead the way through the forest. Soon enough the smell of soot and burnt wood reached their noses. They walked into a clearing covered in ash, full of fallen trees and the burnt remains of stumps. The only untouched tree was the one in the center of the clearing, identical to its likeness in the video; hollow, mossy, leafless. From the only outstretched limb hung the remains of the thorned noose previously used to hang the body. The corpse itself was not present, probably taken for an autopsy.

Kurama went straight to the tree without pause, as though he wasn't bothered in the least, and removed the vine for closer inspection.

"This place gives me the creeps," Kuwabara groaned. Yusuke walked a couple of steps ahead, eyes on the ground.

"Check this out," he pointed downwards. A large, black line circled around the entire hollow tree, centering on the area where the body had been. It looked so stark and unnatural that it might as well have been painted over the ground. "Looks like somebody cast a spell."

"Weird," Kuwabara said. "For what, though?"

"Maybe they started the fire from here," Yusuke pondered.

"It may have been meant to conceal the area during the crime," Kurama said, holding the vine in his hands. He did not look up.

"Any way we can tell for sure?" the Spirit Detective asked, scratching his head.

Kurama looked sidelong at the circle in question. "Collect a few pieces of the affected grass; Koenma's Ogres may be able to gather a conclusion."

"What about that vine stuff?" Kuwabara inquired. "Its from south –?"

"Far south," Kurama said. "At the very center of this region is a bog; that's the only area where this grows." He fingered the vine carefully, staying away from sharp, bright red thorns sprouting out of it. "The thorns secrete a toxin that paralyzes the body, but only that. It doesn't affect consciousness or the senses. Basically this was used to make the victim hang limply instead of struggling."

Yusuke's brow furrowed. "So after beating up this girl, they paralyzed her so she had no way to escape hanging. _Then _they cut her up even more?"

"That seems to be the situation," Kurama said flatly. He continued to stare at the organic remains in his hands. "A demon between fifty and one hundred years is virtually the equivalent of a twelve year-old. These people are not worried about the age of their victims."

Yusuke cursed. Kuwabara sighed. "Well, there's gotta be a reason. Three murders like this, right? What connection might there be?"

"Females, young demons, rare breeds, kitsune breeds, purebreds," Kurama listed off characteristics in a plain tone. "It may simply be the colour of her hair; we have no idea until we see the other cases."

"Doesn't look like anyone's around, either," Yusuke glanced to his left, then his right. "_At all._ So no witnesses. Unless you're picking up anything, Kuwabara?"

"I'm getting something," Kuwabara ascertained. He nodded to his left. "From over there; but its real far away."

"We're close to the North border." Kurama dropped the vine suddenly, eyes trained in the direction Kuwabara had indicated.

Yusuke blinked a few times. North border…north border…why did he feel a sense of foreboding with the mention of the north border?

"Hey, it's coming closer," Kuwabara said suddenly. "Even closer – hey, it's pretty fast, kind of like-,"

Kuwabara was abruptly flattened to the ground. Hiei stepped off him boredly with a nonchalant "hn".

"Agh! Damn it, Hiei!"

Yusuke snickered. Hiei walked over to the tree and regarded it irritably, unimpressed. His expression was a little harder than usual, and Kurama did not fail to notice. As if sensing his stare, Hiei turned and glared venomously at him.

"What?" he snapped.

Kurama said nothing.

"Where were you?" Yusuke asked his companion curiously.

"You're not my keeper," the red-eyed demon snapped. "Are we searching the area or not, detective?"

He was the first to trudge away, southwards.

* * *

"Nothing," Yusuke repeated for the umpteenth time. "There's _nothing _in south Makai. As in, nobody. Nothing bigger than a beaver."

Koenma's jaw turned. "You went through the whole territory?"

"Jesus, Koenma, we've been gone for _days,_" Yusuke groaned. "_Yes, _we covered the whole territory and _nobody's there._"

The demi-god sighed. "Is there anything else?"

Yusuke leant back tiredly. There were bags under his eyes. "Yeah, we got some…I dunno…some black stuff was on the grass near the crime scene, we thought the ogres could make something of it-,"

But Koenma was shaking his head. "Just give it to me. They're busy for now."

The Spirit Detective rolled his eyes. "They're always busy. Just tell 'em to stop whatever they're doing and-,"

"Not going to happen," Koenma snapped. "Give me the sample, Yusuke. I already gave Kurama the files on all the murders. Tell him I want conclusions ASAP."

Yusuke sighed and dropped the grass sample on Koenma's desk as he stood up. "Gotcha."

Yusuke walked out, wanting nothing more than to go to bed. But the second he was out of Koenma's office, something was dead off.

There wasn't _one _Ogre in the area. Small desks stuffed with papers were empty. Pens and folders of every colour were scattered like leaves over the ground. But the seats were unoccupied. There was no desperate sense of panic filling the air, no high-strung screams of frustration.

There was only her, sitting on a nearby desk and staring at her bare feet. She was wearing baggy clothes sort of like pajamas with her hair in a tangled plait. She looked up at him, pale blue eyes staring almost through him.

Braid resting on her shoulder, she smiled wanly.

"Dai? What are you doing out there?"

Dai slipped off the table. She was…taller, for some reason, nearly at Yusuke's chin. But strangely enough, she looked more…childish?…than usual. Blankly, almost airily she walked around Yusuke and slipped into Koenma's office.

The door clicked shut gently.

Yusuke shook his head and groaned. "Freaking weirdo."

* * *

TBC. Oh, please review. I LIVE FOR THEM.

...kidding.


	3. King for a Day

I: Ooh! Look how nice and _long _it is!

(oooooh) (aaaaaah)

Okay. I'm sort of unsatisfied with this chapter. But I'll let you be the judge.

Disclaimer: I'm sure it's hard to beleive, but I don't one Yu Yu Hakusho.

* * *

**King For A Day**

Kurama sat at his desk, staring at the five folders before him. Two out of the three victims had been female. None of them had come from the same region, but all of them were murdered in South Makai. All of them were rare breeds. Two of them had been kitsunes. None of them had any recent records of visiting South Makai. All three had been young.

According to this data, though it was somewhat unreliable due to the small number of murders, targeted demons were rare youkai, young youkai, or both.

The murders seemed to happen in no presently discernable pattern. They had all happened at different times of day, in different places. No witnesses had been found, nor had any of them come forward.

Rare breeds. The characteristic stuck in his head. The last murder had been far too close to the North border. And not far from the north border was a clan brimming with all sorts of rare breeds.

Which brought to mind another matter he should soon take care of.

As if on cue, a shadow slipped soundlessly through his window – which had not been opened previously – and touched down on the soft white carpet of his room. Hiei turned to the window and slid it offhandedly into place with a soft 'click'. Not once glancing at the kitsune, Hiei boredly moved across the room to the miniature fridge in the corner and removed a small tub of chocolate ice cream. With nothing but unadulterated dignity the youkai took a spoon from the top of the mini-fridge and stuck it in.

Kurama watched him for a moment, then patiently began to close the folders. One by one, he slid respective papers into their original homes and closed them gently, piling them one on top of another.

It was Hiei, more out of irritation from the mental jabs he was receiving than anything else, that spoke first. "It's not your concern," the red-eyed youkai leant against the wall, tub of ice cream in hand.

Gently, Kurama slid the pile of folders to one corner of his desk. "You smell like her."

"Hn."

"Where is she?"

Hiei's eyes were trained on his food as he scooped more ice cream. He provided no answer. Silence reigned across the small room, but Kurama was a patient man and he knew if Hiei hated one thing, it was involuntarily receiving the thoughts (polite threats) of others.

'I am waiting.'

Hiei stabbed his food with perhaps more force than necessary.

'Tell me. Answer me.'

"Stick your nose back in your schoolbooks," Hiei said with thinly veiled frustration. "It has worked effectively for this long."

'_Where is she?'_

"I will _dismember you._"

'I am waiting. I am waiting.'

Unable to withstand any more force, Hiei's plastic spoon finally snapped. His scowl was thunderous; Kurama was nudging too persistently on a well-guarded nerve. Slamming the tub of ice cream down with barely controlled vexation, Hiei stalked towards the window, eyes narrowed, fists tight.

'I am patient.'

Hissing, Hiei thrust the window open –

Just as someone knocked on the door. "Suuichi? Anyone home?"

"Aa." Kurama watched the curtains rustle gently and his window slide shut once more as Hiei took his leave. Standing, Kurama walked to the closed door and opened it. "Yuki-san," he greeted quietly. A faint smile came and went. "What brings you here?"

Yuki glanced down quickly, as though expecting the floorboards to answer for her, before she looked back up and smiled. "I heard you were pulling another study night," she explained, and held up a bento box. "So I made you some dinner."

"That was very kind." Kurama received the box politely. "Would you like to come in?"

"Um," Yuki glanced at her watch. "Sure, I've got a few minutes. Unlike you, I am _not _nocturnal and need my sleep."

She smiled happily despite her words and stepped in as the redhead pulled open his door. Yuki paused upon entering, her expression shifting to one of surprise. "Wow, what a clean room!"

"I like to remain organized." Kurama walked to his desk and gently nudged his stack of file folders to one side so he could place the bento box down. Yuki stood to one side politely as he opened it. "This looks delicious. Thank you, Yuki-san."

She shrugged, her smile widening. "I thought you might get hungry. You're pretty skinny; I was worried you weren't eating right."

Kurama avoided glancing towards his closet, inside which sat many chocolates and fruit baskets given to him by fan girls. "Yes, thank you."

Yuki clasped her hands together sheepishly. "You're too polite sometimes, Suuichi." Her eyes wandered to Kurama's desk.

Her expression dropped.

Kurama leant against his chair. "Is something the matter, Yuki-san?"

"You're not doing all of _that _tonight, are you?" she asked warily, pointed towards the neat stack of schoolbooks, his open laptop, a small stack of assignments and the three thick homicide folders. "That's too much! Suuichi, you need to take a break and go to sleep."

Kurama surveyed the work on his desk, most of which could be finished within the hour, he figured. "That is unnecessary."

"Oh, but – you'll tire yourself out, and-," Yuki bit her lip worriedly, stepping a little closer to him without noticing it. She was searching his face, as though already worried he was showing signs of exhaustion (though if Kurama was to suffer exhaustion from anything, he thought, it would certainly not be simple schoolwork). "And I don't want to see you sick, Suuichi…"

Kurama smiled faintly. He looked down at her. "I am well aware of my limits, Yuki-san," he reassured her. "Please don't worry yourself. I will stop when I feel tired."

She looked relieved. Her shoulders dropped slightly, and the smile was once again fixed into place. Yuki glanced at her watch again. "Alright. I trust you. Goodnight, Suuichi."

Kurama watched the door begin to shut. Once again alone, the redhead sighed gently and glanced down at the bento box. He didn't feel hungry at all.

Listlessly, Kurama picked up his Communicator and decided to speak with Koenma.

* * *

Kuwabara trudged through Koenma's palace for the second time that week, feeling utterly drained. Yusuke had sent him to ask the toddler bout attending his wedding because _apparently _the cocky Spirit Detective couldn't do it himself, because he'd "Been away from home too long".

Which meant Keiko had chained him to something.

Kuwabara really had to figure out where that woman bought her chains.

Still, he figured that since Keiko was already overly frustrated with the impending wedding, it was the least he could do to invite Koenma to the wedding. And Botan, too, while he was at it.

Kuwabara was about ten feet from Koenma's Office – traveling through the hectic warplane that was the Ogres' workroom – when his Communicator went off. Pulling the small compact out of his pocket, the orange flicked it open.

"Yo, Kuwabara! You _there _yet?"

Kuwabara scoffed. Really, Yusuke thought he was running a dictatorship or something. "For crying out loud, Urameshi, I _can _get to Koenma's Office without getting lost!"

Yusuke had the gusto to grin. "Oh, really. I seem to remember a certain idiot accidentally transporting himself to Spain-,"

"That was once, okay? ONCE!" Kuwabara screeched into the Communicator, his face reddening. Ogres around him paused in their work to look at him questioningly.

Kuwabara cleared his throat. "So, what're you really calling me about?" he asked in a dramatically dignified tone.

"Oh yeah," Yusuke scratched his head. "Keiko wants you to ask Botan – you know, _blue hair, pink eyes_-,"

"I _know who she is,_" Kuwabara hissed.

"-to be a bridesmaid," Yusuke continued, smirking at Kuwabara's expense.

"Bridesmaid? Really? I can't see Botan standing still long enough for an entire ceremon-,"

The floor beneath Kuwabara shuddered suddenly. A strange, dim glow was coming from the cracks between Koenma's closed doors. The Ogres paused in their work as though shocked.

Kuwabara grew alarmed.

"Yo, Kuwabara? What's-,"

"Call you back!"

Panicked, Kuwabara made a dash for Koenma's Office. He threw open the doors only to be struck by a milky sort of light filling blotting out the entire room; a light that washed through the open doors as though it had been held back. Fearing the worst, Kuwabara blindly rushed into the room, ready to attack whomever the hell was trying to attack Koenma. He knocked into something on the way – a person, Kuwabara realized distantly – before something fast and hard stuck him from the side and slammed him into the opposite wall.

The light disappeared quickly. Kuwabara rubbed his head and peered around the room to find a teenaged Koenma standing up from the floor, looking shell-shocked. Just as surprised-looking was Dai, standing across from him in a red kimono with her eyes steadily changing from deep blue to black. Her head was tilted to the side slightly, and she was staring at him with obvious startlement.

Koenma's shock, however, was rapidly turning to fury.

"**KUWABARA! JUST WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?"**

"Uh?" Kuwabara had no idea why he was being yelled at. "Um, sorry, I thought you were being attacked or something-,"

Koenma's fist slammed down on his desk, making stacks of paper topple over. Koenma was beyond angry. Ogres were streaming into the room.

"Koenma-sama? Are you alright?"

"Dai-sama? Is there any damage?" Ogres were tilting her head and prodding her side whilst Dai carried on as though they weren't there at all.

"Out! All of you! Out! _Kuwabara! _Do you _have any idea _what you just did?"

"Er – no," Kuwabara answered, blinking. "Sorry?"

"Dai! Resume the transaction!"

"That is not possible at this time," Dai stated, not once looking away from the carrot-top, as though fascinated.

"Eh?" Kuwabara felt as though he was missing something.

Koenma hissed softly. "Ku-wa-bar-a," he growled ominously. "You…you…I can't _believe…_" the teenaged demi-god sighed shortly. "You interrupted the ritual."

"I did what?"

"You interrupted the ritual," Koenma snapped again, "Which renews the bond between master and slave. Thus, now _you _are…"

Dai smiled slightly. Kuwabara only caught it because he'd been afraid to take his eyes off her. He watched with some wariness as she walked towards him, stopped a couple of feet away, and bowed deeply.

"You are now my master."

* * *

What. The. Hell.

Kuwabara swallowed. Koenma eyed him coolly from his seat at his desk.

"Dai," he began, nodding towards the woman standing _right beside _Kuwabara's chair. "Was first brought into servitude almost three hundred years ago, when Youko Kurama split her soul in two. One half of hr soul remains inside her; the other, was absorbed by Youko Kurama."

"You can absorb a soul?" Kuwabara squeaked.

"Someone like Kurama had his ways." Koenma said darkly. "As long as Youko harbored part of Dai's soul, she could not disobey him, nor deny him anything he asked for. However, once every five years or so the bond of master and slave would weaken, and thus Youko designed a sort of ritual in which Dai's soul is briefly returned to her before half is taken away again. Only a couple of seconds inside the original body, and the soul is completely replenished. Now, this ritual doesn't need to happen every five years. It can happen whenever the owner wants – or when the owner dies. _Someone _has to take ownership of Dai again, or she'll just fall into a comatose state. We were in the middle of doing this ritual," Koenma's eyebrow ticked, "When you interrupted, and received Dai's soul instead of me."

"Don't be jealous, Koenma-sama," Dai chided sagely.

Koenma snorted. Kuwabara blinked.

"Wait, so – then why can't we do the ritual right now? You take her, I don't wanna have a slave or anything-,"

"I don't plan to leave her with you," Koenma scowled. "But Dai needs time to recover from the earlier ritual. When she's good and ready is when we'll do this again."

"There is nothing to worry about, Koenma-sama," Dai said, hands clasped behind her back and smiling lightly. "We can do the ritual now, I don't mind-,"

"No," Koenma barked. "By tonight. Midnight. Will you be better by midnight?"

"Yes," she sighed.

"Good." Koenma nodded sharply. "Now Dai, go outside. I want to talk with Kuwabara."

Dai didn't move. Kuwabara looked up at her warily. Braid drawn over one shoulder, smiling slightly, she didn't look at all like Yusuke had described her yesterday. As he watched, she fooled with her white obi and folded her fingers together.

"Koenma-sama. If you think I'm not going to take complete advantage of the fact that _I don't have to obey you_-,"

Koenma twitched. He glared angrily at Kuwabara, who swallowed nervously.

"Um…" he looked at his current "servant". "Could…you…well, you know…em, for a…minute?"

"Pathetic," the demi-god hissed.

"I will of course, master." Dai acknowledged Kuwabara's sad attempt to order her around with a small nod before walking out the door.

Koenma fell back into his chair, for once fitting into it perfectly in his teenaged form. His narrow eyes glowered at the desk before him, arms folded over his chest as though he was thinking deeply about something very important.

Minutes passed.

Kuwabara shifted nervously in his chair.

"Um. I'm really sorry."

Koenma grunted.

Kuwabara got the distinct expression Koenma wanted nothing more than to throttle him. Slowly, the demi-god sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "This couldn't have happened at a worse time."

"It's only one day," Kuwabara tried to be optimistic.

Koenma's eyes flickered upwards. "One day." He repeated. "Yes. Just one." He sighed and leant forwards again, flipping open a notebook and scratching notes on a clear page. "Alright, listen. You have to order her to do these things today, at the specific times I write down. You can basically leave her alone after that."

He handed him the paper and waved a hand boredly. "So get out, will you?"

"Uh, okay."

And leave he did. Dai was waiting outside, leaning against the wall and looking like she didn't mind at all being traded between masters. Like some sort of tool, Kuwabara thought, and couldn't help feel bad.

"Koenma wanted me to give you some orders," Kuwabara told her, holding up the folded sheet.

Dai nodded patiently. Her mouth was tilted in a crooked grin, as though she was inwardly chuckling over a private joke. Kuwabara wondered if there was something on his face. Clearing his throat, the orange top unfolded his list and read the first command.

"You need to check in at the lab in ten minutes. After that, you have to go to the training grounds. And you can't go to Ningenkai…can't kill anyone unnecessarily…um, but after the training stuff you can do what you want for the rest of the day."

She seemed to absorb the information like a sponge. Dai bowed to him and then turned to walk down the hall.

Curiously enough, Kuwabara found himself following.

Almost immediately, she stopped and looked back at him with mild amusement. "Master," she began, quite patiently. "Your business is my business, not vice versa."

Kuwabara shrugged. He wasn't really sure why he was following. Maybe he was just curious; what did Dai the dragon do on a regular basis? She didn't look like the type to sit knitting at home all day.

…but then again…

"_Ne, ne, Mahiru-chan! Look, I made you a tail-warmer!"_

…he could imagine it.

"I just…there's nothing to better to do."

It occurred to him that maybe she didn't want to be followed around all day. But Dai only bowed again (did she do this to Koenma all the time, too?) and continued in her original direction.

As ordered, she went to the labs. It was like a large hospital inside; Ogres in white coats, large computers, blindingly white beds folded with crisp sheets. Kuwabara followed Dai in. Dai sat down on an observation table as one of the Ogres greeted her.

"Good morning, Dai-sama!" the Ogre greeted. He blinked at Kuwabara. "Ah, good morning Kuwabara, is there something we can – ?"

"No no," Kuwabara put his hands up quickly. "Um, I'm just here with her." He pointed to Dai.

Dai smiled faintly at him.

"Okay then," the Ogre chirped. "Dai-sama, hold your arm out if you please."

Dai did so, patiently pulling up the sleeve of her red kimono. The Ogre cleaned the crook of her arm with some rubbing alcohol before using a small knife to make a tiny incision. A small stream of blood spilled out as the Ogre inserted a needle into the incision and injected some sort of antibiotic.

Dai noticed Kuwabara surprised expression. "Ne, my skin is too thick for the needle to go in itself," she explained. "So we cut me open with iron."

Okay, ew.

When he was finished, Dai pulled her sleeve down. "That's enough for now."

"Yes, Dai-sama," the Ogre smiled at her before returning to his work.

Dai got off the table, stretching. She looked rather pleased for someone who'd just gotten a shot. The both of them walked out of the labs.

Kuwabara stuffed his hands in his pockets. "So, do you always-,"

"-go for shots?" the black-haired woman fingered her kimono, frowning slightly at him. "No. Not really. This isn't my colour, is it, master?"

"Er-,"

"The shade's too bright. I'll dye it."

Dai paused her walk. Kuwabara looked her way warily. "What?"

"You have to order us to the training grounds." Her face was blank.

"I do?"

"There's no other way to get there."

"Can't we ask Botan?" he really didn't like the idea of bossing her around. She was kind of scary.

Dai's eyes softened. "I make the ferry girls uncomfortable."

Kuwabara was a little slow, maybe, when it came to some things but he knew what Dai might be talking about. The dragon had been alive for a long time, and they weren't the most sedated creatures you could meet. Not to mention the scraggly girl in front of him was a tool; it was most likely that, at one time, she had been a tool of war.

"Okay then," Kuwabara rubbed his neck in embarrassment. Dai bounced on the balls of her feet.

"Kuwabara-sama, Kuwabara-sama," she began brightly. "Don't be so nervous! Go ahead and spit it out!"

Kuwabara's brow creased. "Uh-,"

"Order me around!" the dragon crowed happily. "Go on, you can do it! One, two, three!"

With some confidence, Kuwabara straightened. "I – I want you to – to…"

"Come on, put some 'umph' into it! I have three year-old descendants that can order me around better than that! One more time, master! With feeling!"

"I want to go to the training grounds!" Kuwabara exclaimed with conviction, puffing out his chest.

"Done!"

There was a crack, and the two disappeared from the hallway.

* * *

Koenma's Communicator beeped. Eyebrow ticking, the young ruler opened it. "Yes, what the _hell _is – oh, Kurama!"

"Koenma-san."

"Well how – how nice of you to call! School going well, I hope! Everything all right over there? Because everything's fine here!" the toddler laughed nervously. "Perfectly fine! It couldn't be finer! In fact, if it was any finer we'd have to get a microscope-,"

"I have come to a conclusion in terms of the homicides." Kurama cut through Koenma's ramblings.

"Wha – oh! Good. Good, good. Excellent. Brilliant. Er, so, ah, these results-,"

"The murders are based on rarity or age, specifically youths. They may be based on both."

"Huh. Characteristics plentiful in the north territory."

"Hai."

"But the victims weren't from that area, were they?"

"No. They were from various areas in the eastern and western territories."

Koenma eyed the kitsune's face through the small screen. Serious. That was the only word he could think of to describe Kurama's concrete expression.

"I suggest action be taken to secure the north border."

"Kurama," Koenma slumped slightly in his chair. "Kakei can take care of it."

"I was not aware Kakei was head of the north."

The demi-god wanted to crawl in a hole and die. He'd slipped, and now Kurama was going to milk it for all it was worth.

"He's not," Koenma mumbled, grateful that he could avoid Kurama's eyes through the small compact. "But he's…getting experience for when he takes over."

Kurama remained silent.

Two years had passed since Erus was sent to death yet again, and Kurama had no further interactions with the mother of his children to Koenma's knowledge. Hiei had seen her once or twice as far as he knew, but never the redheaded prodigy. Yet whenever Dai was brought up through conversation, Kurama was closely listening. And when Dai ever mentioned Kurama, she did not seem to hold contempt towards him.

And these things struck the demi-god as odd.

Of course, he knew neither of them was completely at fault for the incident that resulted in conception of Kakei and Matsu. But Dai was nothing if not loyal and it had broken her heart to participate in an act so unfaithful to Kuronue. At the same time, Youko had been a youkai of control, a creature that did not fall to pleasurable temptations, and an ally who was committed to his partner in crime.

A complete accident. One could not change the past. But Dai never forgave herself, or Youko. And Kurama had returned those sentiments.

So one could only ask oneself; after not speaking to each other _at all _for the past, say, hundred years or so, what exactly had changed so much to make them, well, _not _hate each other?

Well, for one, Kuronue was dead. With Kuronue dead, and Dai the only head figure of her rapidly expanding clan, Kurama might feel it is his responsibility to pay her special attention in lieu of the deceased bat youkai. Dai looked out for many people, but someone eventually had to look out for her. Perhaps Kurama is venturing to set things right with his estranged sons and descendants.

And Dai was not as stubborn as she used to be. She was rather mellow these days. Erus was dead, Kuronue was dead. Her hatred had been lit anew some sixteen years ago when she discovered Kurama was alive but Kuronue wasn't. But then Erus had to be killed again, and Kurama did nothing if not religiously protect her and her children.

Koenma sighed. Youko Kurama and Dai. Two of the oldest powers alive. Maybe that just brought them together. Maybe they felt a connection towards one another.

Maybe he should ask Kurama. But personally, Koenma didn't think that'd go over so well. Should he ask Hiei?

The demi-god grimaced. Even worse.

"…have not been listening to me for the past five minutes, Koenma."

"Eh? What?" Koenma blinked stupidly at his Communicator.

Koenma only stared back at him, calm. "Something is wrong with Dai." He repeated.

"What?" Koenma said again. "Nothing's wrong with Dai. She's fine."

Kurama did not need to reply to that, they both knew he was lying. Koenma sighed shortly. "Kurama. I don't see how you have the right to know what goes on with her all the time."

"She is the mother of my children." Kurama said it, and his face drew in. He was not as cordial as he used to be.

"Children you fathered in an illegitimate fashion, may I mention-,"

"Koenma." The way Kurama said his name told Koenma he had gone too far. "That is between her and I."

Soon after, their conversation ended, and Koenma was left sitting in his chair feeling both guilty, and perplexed.

* * *

It was the oddest thing Kuwabara had ever seen.

Dai had lead him through the training facility to her classroom, and asked him to wait in the hall. Kuwabara didn't really mind. Last thing he wanted was to be jeered at by a bunch of rookies. She'd smiled accordingly and bowed (again), saying that she hoped he would be comfortable and that she would try not to take long.

Dai walked in. Thirty seconds later, she walked back out.

Aaaand Kuwabara was back to being confused. Dai smiled slightly at him – not as blinding as usual – and took a place next to him. Moments after, they both watched the door open. Kuwabara witnessed a number of uniformed trainees flood out of the room, talking amongst themselves and wearing confused expressions. A girl with her hair in a ponytail, followed by a few of her friends, approached Dai.

"Dai-dono," the younger girl began hesitantly. Dai stared down at her. "Why?"

_Why what? _Kuwabara found himself wanting to know.

Dai returned the girl's gaze. "It was time."

This didn't seem to answer the girl's question, if the look on her face was anything to go by, but she nodded slightly anyways and she and her friends departed.

When the hall was empty, Dai turned on her heel and strode back towards the exit with an accomplished sigh. "Well, all done here-,"

"Wait, wait, wait," Kuwabara began. "What just happened?"

Dai's face looked paler than usual in the sunlight, but she wore her usual smile. "I resigned."

"You – _resigned? _But why?"

"Didn't you hear me, master? It was time. Now, since I am done with my chores, we may do whatever you want to do."

Jesus, the woman changed subjects like no tomorrow. But her offer surprised him. "Whatever I want to do?" he repeated numbly.

Dai folded her arms behind her back. "You _are _my master."

Kuwabara wished she would be more affected by it. He frowned, studying Dai's blankly pleasant expression, lacking genuine feeling. Her eyes stared at him but through him, like he wasn't really there.

Was this the way she looked at Koenma, when waiting for orders?

"Don't you get tired of it?" Kuwabara found himself asking.

"Tired of what?" Dai replied, again with fake curiosity. Why had Kuwabara never noticed that look before?

"Of…of being bossed around, all the time," Kuwabara frowned. Dai didn't seem affected.

"I am pleased to carry out my master's orders."

"No one can live like that," Kuwabara decided adamantly.

"I know the repercussions of being extensively disobedient." Dai stated this quite plainly. "And so, I am pleased to carry out orders."

"Repercussions? What, like a Time Out?"

"When I was younger," Dai sighed. "I was very disobedient with Youko-sama. Do you see these?" the black-haired female touched one of the marks on her face, as though they were not blindingly vivid enough to be seen without her pointing them out.

"Yeah," Kuwabara replied when he realized she wanted a response. Dai rubbed her jaw gently.

"Marks," she explained plainly. "From a whip. Youko-sama's was slightly different back then; it held acid-like characteristics until he later changed to thorns."

Kuwabara could not see Kurama, nice, quiet Kurama ever _whipping _somebody like that. Okay, well maybe he could. But not someone other than an actual, legitimate enemy. And Dai was – well, she was a little weird, but she was a nice lady. A family sort of woman. And the whip had to be pretty damn strong to leave actual scars like that on a dragon's thick hide.

"He wasn't really nice to you, was he?"

"I wasn't really nice to him, either."

Probably true. Dai sighed through her nose and stared at him. "So what do you want to do, Kuwabara-sama?"

"I…well…what do you suggest?"

"Well," Dai sighed slightly, glancing around in consideration. "I could take you flying."

Kuwabara blinked. "…flying?"

* * *

"AAAAAAAAAAAH! HOLY SHIT!"

"Kuwabara-sama." Dai smirked next to him, a hand set on her ship. "Really. We aren't even moving."

That was SO against the point. Here they were, thousands of thousands of thousands of feet above the ocean and SHE IS LAUGHING AT HIM.

Dai glanced back at the cliff edge they had walked off with some speculation. "Is it that bad?" she wondered.

Kuwabara grasped Dai's hand for dear life, knowing if he let go, he was dead. Deader than dead.

The two of them were currently standing together like anybody normally would on land, except that they were standing on air. And Kuwabara was about to go have some serious cardiac arrest going on.

Dai was still laughing.

"Oh my God, on my God, we're gonna die," Kuwabara wailed.

"We aren't going to die," Dai answered, amused out of her mind. "Why don't you hop on the spot? See what happens."

"YOU MUST BE OUT OF YOUR MIND! I THOUGHT WE WERE GOING FLYING!"

That definitely would have been easier than STARING HIS OWN DEATH IN THE FACE but Dai was oblivious to his panic.

"Right," she said lightly. "Time to fly!"

And she let go of his hand. Immediately, Kuwabara was falling.

"OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD! I'M GONNA DIE!"

The water was coming closer, it would be only seconds before he hit the surface and the contact would kill him and break every bone in his body, and _oh kami he didn't even get to see Yusuke hammered at the wedding _–

Something grabbed his wrist, and Kuwabara was suddenly stable again. It took a few minutes to get the courage to open his eyes. They stood about a foot above the water. Just as Kuwabara heaved a sigh of relief, she let him go again.

"ACK!"

Dai rested herself on an outcropping rock, legs folded, bare feet delicately submerged in the clear blue waters and unbothered by the water drenching the last few inches of her silk kimono.

Kuwabara stood up in the water – it went to about his elbows – and stared incredulously at his temporary servant.

Yeah. Servant. Pfft.

"You – you dropped me!" he exclaimed in a scandalized tone.

"Flying is generally the same principle," the pale woman murmured crossing one leg over the other and setting her chin in her hand. "And you did not order me _not _to drop you."

"I didn't – so what, because I didn't order you to, you could, like, kill me right now?"

"Of course not," Dai replied blandly. "If I intentionally harmed you without permission to do so, I would die."

Kuwabara blinked. "Die?" he repeated uneasily. Man, slavery was strict.

"Yes," Dai splashed her foot gently. "Just…fall over, and die. No sound. No blood. I've seen it happen before. Youko-sama covered all aspects of the master-slave relationship."

Kuwabara frowned. "So…you don't like Kurama, do you?"

"Youko-sama has made some decisions in the past I was not partial towards, master," Dai replied carefully. "He never watched the twins grow up. He never had a part in raising them." She sighed softly, and leant against the sheer cliff wall. "But…when they were in danger, he readily took action. And he did, once, somewhat apologize for what occurred between us."

"I think Kurama would like it if you visited him."

Dai glanced sidelong at the orange-haired young man. Kuwabara squinted in thought. "I mean, he's just been acting funny lately. He hardly talks or anything, except maybe to Hiei, and…I dunno, maybe you can get through to him."

She raised her feet out of the water. "Maybe," she answered, dark eyes studying the ripple effect swiftly dissipating before her.

Kuwabara heard his Communicator go off. After a moment of searching, he pulled it from his pocket. "Hello?"

"Oi, Kuwabara! We gotta get our asses into Makai. Koenma says there's some activity in the south."

"Okay, meet you there."

"What do you mean, 'meet me there'? We've got to go through the portal-,"

"Um, bye!"

Kuwabara snapped his Communicator shut. He looked imploringly at his companion. "Um, Dai?"

"Hai, master?"

"Um, I need to get to south Makai."

"Easier done than said, master," Dai chirped. While Kuwabara was trying to work that out, the both of them were transported to the forests of south Makai with a loud 'snap!'. Kuwabara looked around him, recognizing the sight and smell of burnt wood.

"Unhappy-looking, isn't it?" Dai glanced sidelong at the ashes caking the earth.

"What's our position, exactly?" Kuwabara asked.

"About five minutes from my lands," she nodded behind her. Not far away, the dead trees faded into lively green vegetation. A hand, Kuwabara noticed, was sitting gently on her obi. It fell almost as soon as he saw it there.

The orange-haired man felt something breeze past him and suddenly, a rather irate-looking Hiei was dragging Dai in the direction of the north border.

But then again. When _didn't _he look irate?

"Hiei-san!" Dai began, grinning nervously. She put up no resistance as the black-haired demon glared his way past Kuwabara. "Eh…ano…er…where are we going?"

"Hn."

"I can't go without permission, Hiei-san," Dai explained in the same comically nervous way to his back. She pointed meekly back at Kuwabara. "I'm escorting master right now…"

Kuwabara grimaced.

Hiei stopped dead. He turned, but instead of looking at Dai he glared at Kuwabara.

"What?" he muttered in a dangerously sharp voice. It didn't take long for the red-eyed demon to put two and two together. But just in case he needed confirmation, Dai was oblivious enough to continue in a cheery voice.

"Well, you see, Kuwabara-sama is my new master for-,"

"_He's what?!_" Hiei all but hurtled forwards, hand already tightly grasped around his katana and was so close – _so close _to jabbing him through the gut –

"Woah, woah, Hiei! Chill, man!" Yusuke jumped in front of him and warded off the growling demon. "No! Bad Hiei! Back!"

"Shut up, detective," Hiei hissed.

"What's going on?" Kurama murmured as he followed Yusuke's path into the clearing. He paused upon taking notice of the kimono-clad dragging standing cluelessly on the sidelines. "Dai?"

She looked at him and bowed briefly. "Youko-sama."

"Oh great! It's the crazy lady! _Wonderful!_" Yusuke exclaimed sarcastically.

"Hello, Urameshi-san! Your timing is quite effective! Hiei-san, why don't you leave Kuwabara-sama alone?"

As one, Kurama and Yusuke looked and her incredulously. "Sama?"

"Kuwabara-sama is my master for the day," Dai bowed deeply in Kuwabara's direction. "Just for today, Hiei-san. Please try not to harm him."

Grudgingly, Hiei replaced his katana.

"For the day? What? Kuwabara? _What?_"

Dai found many eyes to be on her. She glanced away. "Master interrupted the regular ritual. Koenma will resume his place as my master later tonight."

"Why couldn't you do it now?" Kurama frowned gently. The petite woman turned her attention to him.

She smiled haphazardly. "I'm a little tired."

Hiei grunted. Further questions were postponed, as he grabbed Dai's wrist and resumed his previous vendetta of dragging her towards North territory. "Er – but Hiei-san-,"

"It's okay, Dai," Kuwabara waved at them until Hiei shot back a glare that could have withered flowers. "Er – you can do whatever you want, I'm good here."

"She can do what the hell she wants whether you're _good _or not," the red-eyed demon all but spat at him.

"Now, Hiei-san-,"

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON? _KUWABARA? _AND – AND _HER? _WHAT – THE – HELL-,"

"Yusuke, please."

"…sorry."

"Hiei, take her out," Kurama urged softly. Hiei didn't need to be told twice. He resumed dragging Dai through to the north lands. Dai twisted slightly in his grasp to give a small wave towards them.

"It was good to see you again, Youko-sama, Urameshi-san."

Kurama's eyes lingered on her retreating form critically, even as she disappeared with Hiei into the north land's vegetation.

'Her movements are unnaturally stiff.'

Dai sighed as Hiei stopped within the Northern forests. He glared at her for good measure. "Stay out of there."

Dai paused and glanced at him, folding her hands into the sleeves on her kimono. "Why?"

His eyes narrowed. "Just do it."

"If you say so," she smiled obliviously. Hiei's eyes narrowed further in suspicion.

"I mean it," he said coldly.

"Why, darling," Dai reached out and rubbed a hand through his hair, earning a very slight twitch from the irate demon, "Whyever would I do something you asked me not to?"

"I told you to stay in Reikai, didn't I?" he snapped.

"But I feel so healthy!" She raised her hands in an exaggerated shrug, sighing carelessly. "And-,"

_-ring-_

Dai paused, tilting her head slightly. "Did you hear that?" she asked softly.

Hiei stared at her. Was the woman going senile? "I don't hear anything."

"Oh." She looked back at him and smiled slightly. "Must have been my imagination. Go on back to your friends now, Hiei. I'll be fine."

"Don't make a fool of yourself and get into trouble."

"I'll be fine, I'm not five, sweetheart."

"Don't call me that."

"Okay," she sang. "Now go on, go on, Kakei was expecting me today anyways."

With one last glare, Hiei turned and took off into the trees. Dai watched him leave with a small smile, one that disappeared when he was out of sight. For a moment she hovered there, one hand placed on the tree next to her, before a soft sigh escaped her lips.

"Lying won't last long," she muttered blandly, rubbing the side of her neck. "Not with that group."

"You should tell them."

A figure emerged from the shadows behind her. Dai sighed again, looking up at Kakei. "I don't want them to know until its absolutely necessary. I don't want to be surrounded by sad faces."

"Mother."

_-ring-_

Dai frowned, staring up at the canopy of trees. After a moment she turned away. "Let's go home until master calls."

* * *

"So, uh," Kuwabara asked nervously, shifting awkwardly from foot to foot. "What're we here for?"

"I'd demand an explanation," Yusuke groaned, rubbing his neck. "But I don't want to get my brain fried with confusion."

"Well, um," Kuwabara glanced around the burnt forest as though it was the most interesting thing he'd ever seen. "It was really-,"

"Why are you wet, Kuwabara?" Kurama's voice was sugary soft, eyes focused indifferently on a particularly charred leaf falling from an ever more charred tree branch.

"Well…Dai, she-,"

"She's not some toy," Hiei was suddenly inches in front of him, having slipped down from the trees. He grabbed Kuwabara's collar and jerked the taller man downwards. "To be tossed around from man to man."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean, shorty?" Kuwabara demanded immediately. "I haven't done anything mean to her or anything-,"

"But you're still the master." Kurama said. "A servant is bound to the master."

"Dude," Yusuke cackled, completely oblivious to the seriousness of the conversation. "She could totally wait on you hand and foot. Give you a massage, a new haircut, bring you snacks – _oi!_"

"Yusuke," Kurama's jade eyes focused on the man now spread eagle on the ground, a large bump on his head and a frustrated Jagan-wielder looming over him. "I did not make Dai a slave to be treated as such. She was used for war, protection, and battlefield purposes only."

A slight lie on his part, perhaps. But that may be overlooked.

"She was saying you gave her those green thingies on her face," Kuwabara prodded his own cheek as though to get his point across.

Kurama closed his eyes. "I am not proud of that."

Youko was. But he wasn't.

Hiei sighed so harshly it came out as a growl. "We are straying off topic. The toddler reported activity in this area. So start investigating it."

* * *

_She was glaring at him._

_Youko could see the dark intent burning in her eyes; plain desire to kill him, hurt him, but he was not perturbed. The proper precautions had been set into place. She would die, just like any of his servants, if she tried to do anything to him. _

_Instead of challenging her glare, Youko sat down at the end of the large, empty dining table set only for one, and observed his plate. "Dai."_

_Her scowl deepened. "What?" she hissed, fangs glinting as she spoke, and notifying Youko that her anger was growing to an all time high. Let her be angry. She could do nothing to him, and her own maddened frustration at this was enough to mildly entertain him. _

"_That is not the proper way to address your master."_

_She was laughingly predictable. Youko could have easily calculated her next statement word for word. "I have _no _master."_

_Dragons were so free-spirited. Thus it would only be more satisfying when that spirit finally broke. _

"_Incorrect. I bought you. I own your soul. I order, and you obey. You belong to me."_

_She glared and hissed, the spitting image of what Youko remembered her mother to look like, from the one moment he had seen her some odd forty years ago. Youko was not easily angered, nor did he feel even slightly affected by the girl's hatred, yet it was important she learn who dominated her early on. _

"_Dai, come here."_

_Her eyes narrowed, expression straining like she was trying to disobey with every fiber of her being whilst, at the same time, her legs followed his command almost effortlessly. She stopped beside his chair, growling, hands clenched at her sides. _

_Youko carefully set his chopsticks aside. _

_Within all of ten seconds, she was on her knees, Youko's right hand imbedded tightly around her jawbone. Blood seeped from the gashes the more she struggled. He drew his talons slowly down her throat, missing vital points quite easily. _

"_I could make you dissect your own organs," Youko stated softly, as though whispering sweet nothings. "I could make your blood run from every pore in your body until you were bone dry. I could make you break your own neck. Such being the case, I suggest you learn your place, lest you find yourself willingly passed among my male subordinates."_

_He removed his hand and watched her stand up quickly, the wounds already healing over. Her eyes were swirling with rebelliousness. _

"_Pour the tea, Dai."_

_Her jaw turned. Slowly, glaring at him the entire time, her fingers wrapped in frustration around the teapot and carefully poured tea into his cup. She set it down hard, but not hard enough to spill any. _

"_You learn quickly, servant."_

* * *

Dear God Kuwabara wanted a latte.

He eyed the squabbling creature tied to a tree with open exasperation. And he groaned loudly, too, just so everybody knew how he felt. This – this…lizard…_thing _was the only youkai they'd seen in the south up to now, so hello, prime suspect anyone?

As it turns out, however, their lizardy hostage was a stammering, fidgety, sweaty guy who could not for the life of him stop babbling.

"_Look," _Yusuke growled for the fifteenth time. "I _asked _you whether the _hell _you'd seen anybody else around here."

"A-anyb-b-b-body else?" The youkai's round eyes were glassy. "Around h-here? Oh no no no no no not here nobody comes here nobody never its t-t-t-terrible-,"

"So then what are you doing here?" Kurama asked quietly, his eyes closed as though to ward off a migraine.

"W-w-w-what am – I was – I was just taking a stroll a-a-a-and got lost and-,"

"All the trees are burnt, you would have known you were entering South Makai." Hiei looked murderous. "Next excuse, fool."

Yusuke shook his head. "So what do you know about the murders happening lately?"

Instead of jumping to reply, the stuttering lizard went dead silent. Yusuke's eyebrow ticked. "I'm waiting, lizard."

The scaly reptile narrowed eyes at them, suddenly wary. "Bad questions. Bad bad bad."

"Don't you start the shit with me, asswipe," Yusuke shook his fist threateningly. "You know something, don't you?"

"Bad questions. Wrong questions."

"Who's murdering demons around here?"

"Bad bad bad," the lizard's mouth twisted; a hoarse sound choked out of his throat. He was laughing. "Questions will kill you. Questions kill kill kill – ahahaha – curiousity killed the little bitty kitty-,"

"Where are these people?!" Yusuke slammed his fist into his open palm. The lizard cackled.

"You'll meet them," he grinned widely. "Hope you meet them, hope so, hope so, then you'll be dead dead dead-,"

"Someone knock him out already," Kuwabara rubbed his temple.

"You hear the bell?" the lizard clutched his sides, cackling. "Ding dong ding dong you're dead dead dead!"

"O-kay," Yusuke sighed heavily as he whacked his mad victim over the head, rendering him unconscious. "That was a complete waste of time."

"Not necessarily." Kurama pushed a stray lock of hair from his line of vision. "Bring him with us to Koenma. He can be interrogated there-,"

"I just interrogated him!"

"-in a more…persuasive method." Kurama cast the Spirit Detective a brief look before turning to the orange top idly nudging a charred stick with his shoe. "Kuwabara."

"Eh?" Kuwabara jumped.

"Since you need to go back with Dai to Koenma's Palace, you may as well go find her. Can you sense her?"

"Yeah," he answered slowly. "But can't I just call her - ?"

"That would not be advised," Kurama shook his head gently. "Our murderers are either targeting young demons or rare demons. Dai is only one of the two, but she is about as rare as they come nowadays."

"Does that mean Hiei's rare, too?" Yusuke pointed idly at a glaring red-eyed youkai. "He's young-ish, and rare-ish…like."

"A rare youkai and a Forbidden youkai are two different things, though it is a fine line," Kurama said simply. "We do not know how specific these murders are. Additionally-,"

"-I pity the soul who tries to hang shorty from a tree," Kuwabara rolled his eyes heavenwards.

"Tch, damn straight." Yusuke shrugged. "But the crazy lady-,"

"She stays out." Hiei's eyes narrowed.

"Okay," Kuwabara put his hands up to ward off another argument. "I'm going, no problem. See you guys tomorrow."

"Later," Yusuke folded his arms behind his head and walked off. Hiei 'hn'ed and jumped into the trees. Kurama turned his back to Kuwabara and followed Yusuke's path.

He paused. "If Kakei is with her," he said without turning, "I suggest you be on your best behavior."

Kuwabara blinked confusedly at the youko's fading back.

* * *

The house Dai's Spirit Energy led him to was…er…

…intimidating.

Seriously. He was about _half _the door's size, and that's saying something. A large brass knocker was about level with his head. Tentatively, Kuwabara reached out and knocked once before jumping backwards and wincing at the noise it created.

Moments later, a boy two-thirds Kuwabara's size opened the door and observed him with a politely blank expression.

"Eh," Kuwabara began intelligently. "Is…Dai…here?"

The boy bowed and turned, waltzing into the large building with a boyish bounce in his step but at the same time with a graceful prestige about him, matching that of his fine navy robes. "Kaa-san!" he called into the house. He turned and was lost to the orange top's vision.

Poor Kuwabara was left standing there, having no idea what to do. The door was still open…so that was an invitation in, right?

Warily, Kuwabara leant over the threshold, peering in. To his surprise, the large foyer before him was not only empty, but also drenched only in silence. He had always expected Dai to have lots of her own descendants, not to mention adopted children, running around her household. But even through the open hallways, the large open rooms, and the magnificent corridor lining the second floor, there was not a sound.

"Um, hello…?"

His own voice seemed to echo only briefly before it, too, was swallowed by the thick stillness. Swallowing, Kuwabara stepped in.

At that moment, a figure chose to make its leisurely way down the grand staircase. A huge, pure white kitsune moved with strange grace down the steps, a thin leather cord hanging around his neck like a collar. Hanging from the leather were three small, bronze pendants. The kitsune's fur was long and thick, his ears set at the constant alert, though his navy – _navy _– eyes were quite human in terms of tranquility.

Kuwabara watched the kitsune reached the end of the stairs and pause to stare at him.

Kuwabara laughed nervously. "Um-,"

But the large canine was moving again. Like a hawk circling its prey, he stalked slowly around Kuwabara without making a sound, eyes regarding the ningen blankly. After a long moment, the kitsune's ears flicked sidelong and with a twitch of his long tail, he turned and went down the corridor behind the staircase.

Kuwabara followed without really thinking about it. The kitsune lead him into a wide kitchen, empty of cooks but covered in flour from top to bottom. On a wooden servant's table at the back of the room Kuwabara recognized Dai's once-clean red kimono as she sat with her back to him, furiously working on something he couldn't see. As the tall man watched, the kitsune skirted around most of the mess and with effortless grace stepped onto the table where Dai sat and placing himself regally next to her, tail curled around his legs as he, too, observed whatever it was Dai was working on.

"Um, Dai?" Kuwabara inched his way in nervously. "What are you doing?"

"Koenma-sama suggest I 'go get a hobby'," Dai twisted around to see him, in the process revealing the large bowl of batter in her hands. "However, I am afraid baking won't be a successful hobby, since I am carnivorous. And I don't like flour."

Yes, Kuwabara thought dryly, looking at the flour-splattered walls around him. He could tell.

"Kaa-san," the boy who had greeted him at the door walked through another door behind Dai's table. He was carrying some papers. "I found my brush."

"Good," Dai smiled faintly and set aside her forgotten batter. Kuwabara shifted nervously; the kitsune still had its eyes on him. The black-haired woman glanced Kuwabara's way. "This is Raito. Raito, Kuwabara-sama is my master for the day."

Raito regarded him only briefly before climbing onto the table. Dai rubbed her hand through the kitsune's soft fur. "Kuwabara-sama, do you have anything you need me to do at the moment?"

"Wha – no no, nope. I'm just, you know, hanging around-,"

"Then I hope you don't mind if Raito practices his kanji?"

"Um, nope!"

She nodded slightly, then paused. "Oh. You've met my son Kakei, haven't you?" she scratched the kitsune's muzzle gently. "Please come and sit. He may look scary but he's really a nice boy."

Riiight. Still, Kuwabara approached the table oh so hesitantly and sat down on a chair, feeling quite short as everyone else was seated on top of the table itself. He watched Raito open an inkwell and dip his brush in, but couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong. The four of them seemed to be the only living things in the entire house.

"In peace we find solace," Dai said suddenly, and Kuwabara wondered what on earth she was going on about until he realized that Raito was delicately writing her words on the parchment before him. He was incredibly skilled with kanji for such a young-looking boy.

"We cherish what will soon escape us, for solace is a moment and not a state of being. Just as the moon rises, the sun dies, the flowers bloom, and the sky is above us, peace will turn once more to unrest. It is in pain we find strength."

When the boy finished, he leant back and observed his own work. After the ink was dry, he held it up. "Did I do well, kaa-san?"

Dai smiled and nodded. "Why don't you set it on my bed upstairs?"

Raito bowed, all mannerisms, before racing away. Dai smiled faintly after him. "Raito is my nephew," she explained calmly when the boy was gone.

"You have siblings?"

She tilted her head a little. "Not anymore. Raito's the only child I could find after my brothers and sisters were killed, one by one."

Kuwabara asked the question that had been bothering him since he got there. "Where's all your kids? Where's Mahiru? Seems like nobody's around."

"I have recently taken it upon myself to find homes for all the children I was taking care of," Dai moved off the table, towards a large pitcher of water. "My clan is scattered about the north lands. I left Mahiru in the care of a kitsune clan in the western territory. The only people living here now you've already seen. Raito lives with me, as does Kakei."

"What about Matsu?"

Dai smiled slightly as she turned back to him. "Kakei," she nodded to the kitsune delicately seated on the table. He stepped off and placed himself next to the chair she sat down in, much like a well-trained bodyguard. "Is my heir. I suggested a joint leadership, but Matsu is too free-spirited to be head of the clan. Kakei only recently began living with me again so that he might gain experience as alpha."

Kakei was still staring at him. _Without blinking. _And it was seriously freaking him out.

"Does Kura-,"

Kuwabara's question fell short, however, when he suddenly found the chair beneath him to jerk backwards and send him toppling over. When he gathered his senses, it was only to find Dai scolding her son.

"-hundred years old, do you think you could show a teensy weensy bit of respect for your father? You don't have to act like everything about him is taboo, Kakei Kurama, and really, you are usually so mature when it comes to these things. Please, sweetheart, be nice to Kuwabara-sama."

Kuwabara righted his chair, sitting back down and watching in wonder as the regal animal's ears folded against his head, eyes narrowed briefly before he returned to his regular erect posture at Dai's side with only one minor change. He was now quite definitely _glaring _at Kuwabara.

"Gomen." Dai nevertheless set a hand on Kakei's head. The fox remained still. "Kakei is telekinetic, you see. He can move things with his mind." She sighed gently. "What were you asking?"

"Eheheheh…" Kuwabara shifted nervously. "Er – does…does Kurama…that is, do you talk to him…about these sort of things?"

Kuwabara cringed after he said it. That was a personal question –

"No, not really," Dai began thoughtfully. "He could have is opinion on the subject, but, as you can see…he isn't looked highly upon by many blood-related clan members."

"Are you talking about Youko-san?" Raito walked back into the room and stood on the other side of Dai's chair.

"Raito," Dai glanced at the boy. "Did you put it on my bed?"

"I placed it on kaa-san's night table," Raito folded his arms behind his back, once again giving the air of a child monarch. "I was thinking kaa-san might go to bed soon."

"That's sounds like a nice plan. Kuwabara-sama. There are many rooms here for your disposal; I suggest you retire as well. I'll be sure to wake you up when we must go see Koenma."

"Um, that sounds good," Kuwabara agreed blankly. Dai nodded, touching Raito's shoulder as she stood up.

"Well then, I'll tuck you in, Raito-chan-,"

Kuwabara couldn't tell if Dai had tripped, but suddenly she was half-kneeling on the ground and Kakei was already by her side yet within the same matter of seconds, the black-haired clan leader was standing again, laughing nervously. "Eheheh…sorry, I'm prone to tripping. Good night, Kuwabara-sama, Kakei."

Raito grasped her hand, no longer leaving a trace of boyishness in his demeanor as he led his aunt out with the air of an intelligent young man. Both Kakei and Kuwabara watched the two leave.

Kuwabara started when he glanced back at the fox, only to find a man standing in his place. Kakei's vivid eyes were glued to him. "However temporary, you are another unwelcome dictator." He turned away. "Do not cause my mother strain."

"I-I really wasn't trying to. You – you could be nicer to Kurama, you know…"

Kakei didn't pause on his way out. "No," he said coldly. "I could not."

Kuwabara sighed as he was left alone. He stood up, figuring he should at least find a room to crash in until midnight came. Relief washed over him as he realized this whole nightmare would be over by tomorrow.

Being around Dai – no, being even in the same _vicinity _as Dai – just made things too damn confusing.

* * *

I: O-kay, well there you have it. I guess this chapter sort of sets the stage for the rest of the story. And I had fun with Kuwabara! I like Kuwabara! He's so...Kuwabara...ish.

Ahem.

RR.


	4. Dead Ends

**So, it's kind of short. I'M SORRY

* * *

**

**Dead Ends**

Koenma looked decidedly more relaxed when Kuwabara and Dai entered his office, despite the late hour. He stood up from his chair in teenager form and looked between them cordially.

"I assume there weren't any problems?" he said, specifically passing Dai a pointed look.

"Why, Koenma-sama," Dai began sagely, smiling in a bright manner. "I am _always _on my best behavior."

"Of course you are," Koenma retorted blandly.

Kuwabara yawned. "Do you think we could get started? It's just I'm dead tired…"

"Yes," Dai turned in his direction. Her face looked pale in the fluorescent light of the office, but her hands were steady when she took his shoulders and steered him back a couple of steps, angling him precisely. She did the same with Koenma. Finally, she moved back from the both of them about a metre and a half, and shut her eyes.

Kuwabara didn't feel anything. There was no spectacular light show, just a faint breeze against his face. Koenma sighed shortly next to him at about the same moment, and Dai let her eyes open again. They were blue.

"Excellent," Koenma walked back to his desk in a much better mood than when he had left it, and sunk into his chair. "You can leave, Kuwabara. Dai, you stay."

"Okay," Kuwabara nodded to him and waved awkwardly at the dragon. "Um, bye."

Dai watched him walk out, then went to the ajar door and gently closed it. Her hand sat on the knob as she stood there for a little while, her back to Koenma. Her head tilted to one side; she swallowed visibly.

"I don't want to stay in Reikai tonight," she began softly.

Koenma scoffed. "You're lucky I let you leave at all, even with Kuwabara."

"I've been here for weeks," Dai insisted gently, turning. "Today was the first time I've been home in a month-,"

"I'm not arguing on this," Koenma snapped. "You're staying. Now get down to the Hospital Center."

Dai blinked. Her expression resembled that of a kicked puppy. Large, blue eyes widened and became wet with unshed tears; her mouth pressed together gently in a sad little line, and her shoulders slumped.

She sniffled.

Koenma groaned. "_You stop that_-,"

"Just one night?" Dai begged. "I'll come back tomorrow morning, really…and Kakei will make sure I get here…Koenma-sama…please…?"

"You think that act is going to get you somewhere but it's not working!" Koenma exclaimed. "I won't budge on my decision even if you start balling your stupid little _crocodile tears _and for Enma's sake, you're a grown woman so you need to give it up right now because it's not making the slight – slightest – slightest-," The teen's voice dwindled as she continued to stand there, sniffling and rubbing at her eyes.

He swiveled his chair around abruptly, crossed his arms, and huffed. "…fine."

"Perfect," Dai sighed serenely, act dropped, and twirled around to face the door. "See you tomorrow, Koenma-sama. Before noon, I promise!"

Humming, the black-haired woman hopped out the door.

Koenma proceeded to grumble to himself for the next hour.

* * *

A demon sat, motionless, to witness the first rays of dawn. 

He shut his pale eyes against the sun that filtered over his face gently, illuminating the white-blonde of his short hair. He was wearing a long robe much like those worn by monks. The youkai sat at the base of a tree, his head tilted back against the bark as though to bask in the pale sunlight. Both legs were drawn against his chest.

The dawn's light glimmered off patches of white scales marring the youkai's skin.

His peace was interrupted, as a male dog demon appeared next to him. "King," the inuyoukai bowed deeply. "The target is on the move."

Disturbed from his thoughts, the blonde youkai sat up and gazed at his underling through heavy-lidded eyes. "Oh?" he said softly.

The inuyoukai nodded. "I saw it with my own eyes."

"How fortunate." The blonde raked his fingers gently across the ashes on the ground. "What was she doing?"

"Bathing, King-sama. She then proceeded northwards."

The blonde youkai was silent for a moment. Slowly, he stood, his thin, frail-looking body towering over the other man. Slowly, he blinked, and his head tilted to one side. "Bathing, you say."

The inuyoukai nodded obediently. "Hai, King-sama."

The blonde circled around him. "My dear boy," he sighed gently, pressing a hand on the youkai's shoulder.

Blood began to seep from the floor. The dog demon hissed, doubling over as the blonde let him go and watched, idly, while his company toppled to the ground.

"Respect her." The blonde continued calmly. "Women are not to be fawned."

Disregarding the dying man, the blonde walked past. He moved through the dead trees silently while removing a small, silver bell from his robes.

"We will release you from your mortal confines," he said calmly. "And you will surely impress me, my lady."

He rang the bell gently.

* * *

Kurama walked into his dorm that afternoon only to find it occupied. 

"Yo, Kurama," Yusuke greeted, munching loudly on a bag of chips in the middle of Kurama's once-pristine bed. Kuwabara sat near the closet, having evidently found the stash of fan-girl gifts that had accumulated over the past month and was happily helping himself to the homemade chocolates. Hiei seemed to be the only one not causing any sort of disruption to his room and merely sat, back flat against the wall, on the carpet under the window.

Kurama shut the door behind him and closed his eyes briefly. "May I ask as to the occasion?"

"We were bored," Yusuke and Kuwabara said as one.

"Fascinating. Do keep in mind this room will be returned to its original cleanliness before you leave."

"Aw, come on," Yusuke put his hands up. "At least this way, your place looks a little _lived in _for once – I mean, come on, your bookcase is sorted by author _alphabetically! _Who has time for that?!"

"I do, apparently."

Yusuke merely rolled his eyes. "Back me up here, Kuwabara."

"Eh? What?"

"You're useless," Yusuke moaned as he threw a handful of chips at the orange-haired man. Kuwabara ducked.

"Hey! Watch what you're doing, Urameshi!"

Kurama merely sighed. He'd only made it halfway to his desk when a portal opened in the far corner of his room near Hiei, and Botan entered on her oar.

"Boys," she began quickly. Her eyes were wide and she looked slightly troubled. "Boys, I need your help on two fronts, here, and I need it fast."

"Why?" Yusuke straightened up slightly and set his bag of chips aside. "What's wrong?"

"I – I – I need someone at the border because he keeps killing everyone else we send in, and there's no use talking to him in this form because it just isn't getting through to him, and pretty soon he's going to go on a rampage if-,"

"Who are you talking about, Botan?" Kurama asked.

Botan fidgeted on her oar. "Kakei," she said, glancing away nervously when Kurama's green eyes darkened. "He's – he's going haywire and no one can talk any sense into him-,"

"What's wrong with him?" Kuwabara asked, surprised. Kakei seemed like a very in-control kind of guy. "Is he sick? Did he get cursed or something?"

"N-no," Botan bit her lip, fidgeting even more. "It's…Dai." She looked in Kurama's direction, and then Hiei's, to see that both of them had the same unreadable expressions.

"We can't…we can't find her."

* * *

Kakei looked like a wolf stalking along his cage. He was huge; the size to a two-story house, nearly, spitting and growling with every step he took, pacing back and forth along the thing line of trees separating north from south Makai. With every step he took the trees shook and groaned, some of their roots ripping from the ground – on the south side ashes continued to sweep upwards in an angry flurry. 

Kurama and Kuwabara, who had been designated the path of getting the future Lord of the North under control, watched from a safe distance.

"Were there any children in the house when you came yesterday, Kuwabara?" Kurama asked quietly. His eyes didn't leave Kakei.

"Just one kid named Raito," Kuwabara replied.

"…Raito…" Kurama glanced at him sideways. "Please go to the manor and see if you can find him. I can control Kakei."

"Good, because I definitely couldn't," Kuwabara laughed nervously and turned around. Kurama looked back at the large, restless fox as the orange-top departed. Kakei's long claws raked at the ground and left wide, ugly scars in the earth. He snarled and growled as he paced back and forth, back and forth, like the line of trees he walked along were the bars of his prison.

"Doing this will get you nowhere."

Kakei turned and snarled, baring his fangs at the redhead, who looked unintimidated despite the great, looming creature advancing on him. "Are you planning to attack me? That will neither impress Dai nor bring us any closer to locating her. You are wasting time."

Kakei replied by snapping and turning away sharply, continuing to pace, to growl. _"She's gone. She was supposed to stay put."_

"She's not a child," Kurama answered quietly. "She can take care of herself. We only need to find her."

"_Don't tell me that," _the kitsune spat venomously. _"You don't know. Your actions have taken their toll."_

Kurama studied him carefully. "What do you mean?" he asked slowly.

Another snarl.

Kurama's Communicator buzzed. He opened it. "What is it, Yusuke?"

"How _apt _do you think whichever twin you have with you would be at finding Dai's scent? Hiei says there's too much ash and burnt wood around here to tell anything."

Kurama glanced at Kakei, who was now crouching low to the ground, his sharp snarls grounding into one constant, dark growl. He was facing southwards.

"It won't work. Kakei's anxiety is driving him to incoherence; the only way to rectify that is to find Dai, but he wouldn't be able to focus long enough to track her."

"Okay, well then – do you have any other ingenious ideas because we're at a dead end here."

Kurama nodded slightly. "Stay where you are. We'll come to you."

"Whatever you say, fox boy."

Kurama watched Yusuke flicker off from the screen before he contacted Kuwabara. "Do you have Raito?"

"What? Oh, yeah. He's here. What's the deal with Kakei?"

"He'll have to stay here. I'll meet you on your way; we're going to join the others."

"Alrighty."

Closing the Communicator, the redhead cast one last look over his shoulder at the large kitsune behind him before sighing slightly and walking in the opposite direction. He walked for only about five minutes before coming across his orange-haired teammate and the young, regal-looking yet somehow childish Raito. Upon seeing Kurama, the bright-eyed boy bowed deeply.

"Youko-sama," he said politely. "Do you know where kaa-san is?"

"Asked me the same thing," Kuwabara put in.

"I was hoping you could help," Kurama replied. "Can you feel her?"

Raito frowned. He glanced around him in confusion, as though expecting Dai to pop out from behind a tree. "I…" finally, he settled on looking at the ground. "I can't, Youko-sama…she…lately…"

"Has she been acting strangely?" Kurama prodded gently, studying her with his almond-shaped eyes, not pressing, never pressing, and to all appearances not anxious in the least – only curious.

But Raito turned his head sharply away from the imploring gaze. "I shouldn't say," he murmured softly. "But I can't feel her anymore."

"That is not a problem," Kurama assured him when the boy's expression grew heavy with distress. "There is more than one way to find her. We'll go meet the others and continue from there."

Kuwabara nodded as Kurama stood and turned leftwards. Raito watched him for a moment, as though bracing himself, before he dashed forward and tailed close behind the taller redhead. When Kuwabara caught up, he saw that Raito was staring almost sheepishly at the ground, a blush dusted over his nose. He looked less the image of a dignified child and more like a sheepish youngling. He followed Kurama like a lost puppy; and maybe, Kuwabara thought, that wasn't too far from the truth. Raito's caretaker had disappeared, Kakei was nowhere in sight, and Kurama was the next most familiar person close by.

Ten minutes later (Kuwabara realized they had circled around the area Kakei was in) Yusuke and Hiei emerged from the bushes, Yusuke with his eyebrows raised appraisingly. "So, fox boy? Who's this kid? What's your big plan?"

"This is Raito. A blood relative of Dai." Kurama's hand found its way to the crown of Raito's head. The boy blushed again, looking flustered.

"Yeah, and how's he gonna help us?" Yusuke bent down and eyed the boy critically. Raito glanced away quickly and, laying eyes on the red-eyed youkai standing outside the social circle, immediately ran to him. Hiei narrowed eyes at Raito as he placed himself behind the other demon, but did nothing else.

"Raito," Kurama began patiently. "Call for Dai-san, please."

Raito's eyes widened. He teetered uncertainly behind Hiei for a moment before turning around to face the dead forestry. "_Kaa-san!_"

Raito's youthful voice echoed throughout the forest. A flock of white birds were startled from their perch and took flight through the sky. Raito wandered a few steps further from the group.

A long moment passed, and there was no sound.

There was a distraught note to Raito's voice this time. "_Kaa-san!_"

Raito looked around, searching, his eyes carefully scanning over every inch of the forest before him.

The earth began to shake.

Loose ashes from the burnt forestry fluttered to the ground. A light wind began to pick up. For one quiet, frozen moment, nothing else happened.

Then Kurama grabbed Raito's shoulder with alarming speed and force the boy backwards just instants before a sleek, fast something flew into their clearing, moving so quickly that when the wind caught up with it it was almost jarring in its strength. With its movement, blood splattered across the trees, the grass, and across the jacket of the one standing closest – Kurama. But that was nothing as within the same moment he was thoroughly drenched in the substance when a humanoid figure ran straight into him with such force it knocked him backwards.

He knew the others had been knocked back with the force of the wind. Kurama took a brief second to gain his bearings before turning his attention to the dead weight on his body. He could feel breathing, harsh breathing against his neck. Long hair tickling his throat. Half of a body, somewhere from the torso down, was thrown over his while the rest of the body was thrown over one side of his shoulder.

The smell of blood was everywhere.

"Dai?" Kurama murmured. His hand rose automatically to where her head was. As he cradled it, he could feel the dampness of both water and more blood. He sat up slowly, aware her body was unresponsive, disturbed by her harsh pants.

She shuddered and swallowed. Kurama could feel Raito's presence approaching. "Kaa-san?" he whispered.

"She needs to get to Reikai, Raito," Kurama explained in a ridiculously patient tone, standing and turning a blind eye to the shudder of pain rippling through her with the movement She was so small in his arms; so…_unlike _Dai. "She can't speak right now."

"What the hell happened?" Yusuke demanded. Even while Kurama stood holding her, blood was steadily creating a puddle at his feet.

Kurama merely shook his head. He neither knew nor cared at the moment; there was a priority at hand. "Hiei, a portal."

Kurama shut his eyes as he heard the telltale sign of the portal opening, relieved that heat was no longer forcing itself against his skin –

The redhead almost dropped his burden in surprise.

She'd stopped breathing.

* * *

TBC.

R and R. (and no I do not mean rest and relaxation.)


End file.
